KING'S BUSINESS PROPHECY SECTION Edited by Dr. Charles L. Feinberg, Dean, Talbot Theological Seminary our fu tu re
BODY / by Glenn O’Neal, Ph.D .*
strange, indeed, if we knew less in heaven than we know on earth. Of what substance w ill the new body be composed? “It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot in herit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortal ity, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory” (I Cor. 15: 44, 50, 54). Our present n atu ral bodies are composed of flesh and blood. Blood is the energizing force th a t gives m an life. It is also subject to corruption and thus causes death. T hat is why a body of “flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God.” The suggestion th a t we shall be “raised a spiritual body” does not mean th a t our bodies w ill be invisible or unreal, but that, instead of having blood as the life- giver, man w ill be energized by the Spirit of God. It w ill be literal body of flesh and bones w ith the Spirit of God guaranteeing th a t there w ill be no corruption. We shall never again become even weary. There is no nigh t in heaven, because a body, energized by the Spirit, w ill need no rest. W ha t shall we be able to do w ith the new body? “All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds” (I Cor. 15:39). This verse indicates th a t every being has a body suited to its environment. Men and beasts are adapted to life on earth. Fish are fitted for life in the water. Birds are constructed so th a t they can live in the air. The new body w ill be peculiarly adapted to life in the Kingdom. I Cor. 15:33 says th a t this body w ill be “raised in power.” And since as we have already suggested, this body w ill be sim ilar to Christ’s body, we can examine w hat Christ did w ith His body after His resurrection. “And as they thus spake, Jesus Himself stood in the m idst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you . . . He said unto them, Have ye here any meat? And they gave H im a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb. And He took it, and did eat before them (Luke 24:36, 41-43). He was not subject to the laws of matter. He came into the room w ithout opening the door. Yet in verses 41-43 He is pictured eating broiled fish and honeycomb, which indicates th a t He had a desire for food and the ability to receive it. The Lord has not revealed to us all th a t we shall be able to do w ith our new bodies, but we know th a t any body th a t would be compared to the body of the One who rose from the dead and ascended into heaven, w ill be a supernatural body. Everyone has his aches and pains, and old age is creeping on, bu t w hat a glorious prospect to all those who are Christ’s, to know th a t we may be changed “in the tw inkling of an eye.” It should be the testimony of every Christian, who has been the weakness and im perfection of this body because of sin, th a t he is not only ready, bu t w aiting expectantly for this great change. *Professor of Practical Theology, Talbot Theological Seminary.
S cientists who accept the theory of evolution have made conjectures as to the appearance of the m an of the future. One w riter suggested th a t m an’s develop ment must include a much larger head to give room for his increased mental capacity. Also, since he w ill no longer require h a ir to provide warm th, it w ill gradually disappear, resulting in women as well as men being com pletely bald. As m an ascends the evolutionary scale he w ill become taller, w ith long legs and short bodies, and no abdom inal protuberance. The Christian can be glad he does not have to guess about the appearance of the m an of the future. The Word of God has given definite information on the sub ject: It gives us clear answers to five questions: Who w ill inhabit the fu tu re world, order? “But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept . . . But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at His coming” (I Cor. 15:20, 23). The promise of Christ is th a t He w ill restore order to the earth in a kingdom of righteousness. Those “who are Christ’s at His coming” w ill be raised to reign w ith Christ in this kingdom. While those outside of Christ w ill be raised for judgment, the perm anent inhabitants of the eternal kingdom w ill include only those who choose to give honor to the Lord. W ha t w ill be the occasion of receiving the new body? “Behold, I show you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkl ing of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (I Cor. 15:51, 52). The time of this g re"t event w ill be a t “the last trump.” This is undoubtedly the same trum p th a t is spoken of in I Thess. 4:16, which assures, “For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven w ith a shout . . . w ith the trum p of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first.” This passage is speaking of the rap tu re of the church, and places the time of the change a t th a t event. It is clear th a t this change w ill be an instantaneous change, not a process, for it occurs “in a moment, in the tw inkling of an eye.” W hat w ill be the appearance of the new body? “The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy, and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heaven ly” (I Cor. 15:47-49). This body w ill bear the image of the heavenly. It w ill be a body patterned after the body which Jesus now possesses. Just as children today bear a marked re semblance to their parents, so our new bodies w ill re semble the only One who now possesses a heavenly body, Jesus Christ. I Cor. 15:43 states th a t this body w ill be “raised in glory.” It w ill be a body of glory, perhaps like the body which Adam and Eve possessed before the fall. All im perfections w ill be removed. No clothing w ill be neces sary, for we shall be clothed in glory. It is often asked, “Shall we recognize each other in heaven?” We answer by suggesting th a t it would be
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MAY, 1961
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